year 1 no. 3 June 2008 Piemonte’s Biella Aura of Europe primacies is bella between Turin and Oropa Riccardo Bedrone Vittorio Barazzotto President of the XXIII UIA World Lord Mayor Congress of Architecture of the City of Biella After the take-off of its exhibition Astro- Biella is the administrative centre of Let us discuss, in this magazine -which the few certain reference points in re- nave Torino, MIAAO, with The Grand a district renowned all over the world also serves as a “catalogue” for the gards to completed architecture works Ceramics Theater. BAU+MIAAO for the quality of its textile products. BAU+MIAAO. The Grand Ceramics (not only designed). In the Manifesto is launching another cultural event Indeed, the initiative of its entrepre- Theater exhibition held at the MIAAO in of Aerial Architecture by Marinetti, -this time associated with the XXIII neurs and the skill of its workers Turin- of the new image & communica- Mazzoni and Somenzi -dated 1933, UIA World Congress of Architecture have, over the years, allowed to per- tion strategies and projects, of urban published on 15 February 1934 in UIA; cementing a relationship that is fect manufacturing techniques such identity. Let us not use the term “street Sant’Elia, issue no. 4- we read, indeed, destined to flourish. Turin’s Order of as to produce cloths and yarns of an furniture”, an expression which seems that “the Lingotto Fiat factory was the Architects, and its Foundation, have excellent quality. It is therefore natural limited, at least in its most widespread first Futurist constructive invention”. decided to transfer their head office that the most famous designers have usage. Not so in the past. Indeed, dur- Saying that the style of Giacomo Mattè to the monumental Baroque com- used Biella-made products for their ing the “foundation congress” of this Trucco -the architect who designed the plex of San Filippo Neri, designed by high-fashion and prêt-à-porter crea- discipline in Italy -promoted by my- important Turin factory- can be con- Filippo Juvarra; where they will be the tions; that so many star-system ce- self in Stresa in 1982- Giovanni Klaus sidered as Futurist is perhaps pushing Museum’s new neighbours. It so hap- lebrities, managers, beautiful women Koenig said that “street furniture is the it a bit, on the other hand there is no pens that Juvarra is also one of the and international personalities have first form of communication of a city doubt about the avant-gardiste views subjects of the exhibition series: La worn and still wear clothes made towards its citizens”, it is an act of “cul- of Nicola Mosso, a follower of the Tu- città disegnata dagli architetti, which with Biella textiles. It may sound tural restoration” aiming at “removing rin Futurist group led by Fillia, and the includes the MIAAO exhibition. This is strange, but, in truth, only a few have a disturbance within a message” (and creator, in Biella, of some crucial works the Congress’s main collateral event, benefited of this undisputable record not at creating it, as too often hap- like the Casa Cervo and other works and may encourage participants, and, indeed, in the public perception, pens). If to this we add that it is also a which were unfortunately demolished visitors, and Turin’s inhabitants to Biella is still just a name, with no spe- way of “transmitting architecture”, we or not carried out. As regards the Ra- discover the old capital city’s concep- cific geographical location: everyone are in perfect harmony with the sub- tionalist Giuseppe Pagano -who, as tion, and the mastery that many great knows it exists but no one knows ject of the XXIII UIA World Congress of Bruno Zevi asserts, “as a driving force architects long ago lavished on it to exactly where it is. This is because Architecture, to be held in Turin: Trans- and leader of a renewing movement give it a rigorous and rational appear- of the understated attitude of the mitting Architecture. Here, we do all of has no parallel in the world, because in ance. The architects Juvarra, Guarini Biella people, who have long shun that based on the experience of the no other country modern architecture and Antonelli also worked at Oropa, the spotlight, preferring to retreat into BAU Biella Arredo Urbano (Biella Street experienced such extreme drama” (B. in the area of Biella. This small town a comfortable isolation: what really Leonardo Mosso, Architektur, 1969, writing-structure, key ideogram system Furniture) project implemented in Biella, Zevi, Storia dell’architettura moderna, has intelligently taken the strategic mattered, after all, was that the at- modulated square alphabet made up of a limited number of horizontal, vertical a province city of the Piedmont region, Einaudi, Turin 1975)- besides the Of- opportunity of the Congress’s pres- tention was focused on this or that diagonal and curved graphemes, Istituto Alvar Aalto, Pino Torinese whose administrative centre, Turin, is fice Building he designed in Turin for ence to reveal its hidden beauty, and manufacturer of an excellent prod- this year the world capital of architec- industrialist Riccardo Gualino from the works of its artificers, including uct. That isolation, which until not ture and, temporarily, the World Design Biella, we want to remember here two important “avant-garde” 20th century long ago was regarded as a privilege, Variable Oropa’s Capital (the logo “world design capital” Biella works which represents impor- architects such as Nicola Mosso, his is now the reason behind a general has been recently registered by the city tant translations of his “moral” notion son Leonardo, and Giuseppe Pagano. redesign of the Biella territory, to bet- Biella hour of Milan: a rapid move aimed at mak- of industrial and community architec- This number of Afterville also refers ter integrate it -through a suitable ing people used to call it so). As you ture. Other hommages in these pages to BAU Biella Arredo Urbano (Biella infrastructural network- into the com- Sergio Scaramal Mercedes Bresso will see, many pages of this magazine are more direct operating models for Street Furniture) project coordinated munication and economic system of President President are dedicated to the history of the de- the BAU project, i.e. the ones paid to by Enzo Biffi Gentili. Afterville would the macro-areas of Northern Italy and of the Province of Biella of the Piedmont Region sign culture of Biella and Turin. This Ettore Sottsass and Achille Castiglioni, also like to celebrate three European Europe. Indeed, in the last decades, choice has been made for two rea- invited by me to come to Turin and con- primacies of Piedmont: the Colour, under the pressure of a global mar- The Biella Province has in its small The Piedmont Region aims to en- sons: the first, dictated by the need of tribute to the preparation and imple- Lighting and Street Furniture Urban ket, low-cost products have invaded size and morphological variety a very hance its resources. Important cultural cultural “references” to be introduced mentation of the Turin Street Furniture Plans. These innovative instruments the consumer world and many Biella- valuable asset: its mountains and hills, events can be considered as factors to a world assembly; the second, dic- and City Lighting Plans at the begin- were all drawn up in Turin between the based plants have been forced to shut its plain and human settlements all of development, as tourist attractions, tated by our belief -as Manfredo Tafuri ning of the eighties. Sottsass Associati end of the seventies and the begin- down or relocate production in better- contribute to creating a landscape of as promotional vehicles or as possible teaches us- that history does not pre- are also the designers of some recent ning of the eighties. Their international positioned areas. A number of small countless nuances. From the Oropa sources of employment. The Region cede action, but it is an action itself. Biella street furniture projects, such as success led their promoter, Enzo Biffi and medium manufacturers, though, Sanctuary, a UNESCO World Heritage has great pleasure therefore in wel- Besides, there are some important the shelters and supports for informa- Gentili, to be given an entry in the remain active, maintaining their focus Site, to the Viverone lake, the views coming the XXIII World Congress of Ar- anniversaries which should not be for- tion (while the Biella Colour Plan, is Dictionnaire international des arts ap- on a high-quality product, for a more change gently, reminding us that the chitecture, an event that thousands of gotten by 2008 Italy. It is exactly eighty based on the Turin plan of 1978 -an- pliqués et du design, (Éditions du Re- upmarket consumer segment, fortu- landscape perfectly embodies the professionals have awaited, at Venaria years since three important events other thirtieth anniversary- managed gard, Paris 1996). Among the project nately growing. What is needed is an notion of Common Good: and that Royal Palace: a symbol of the capac- were organised in Italy in 1928: the first by Giovanni Brino, the director at that leaders were the architect Achille innovative strategy, designed also to there are some things whose quality ity of cultural, architectural, urban and Exhibition of Futurist Architecture, held time, fortunately still active and alive). A Castiglioni, and the designer Ettore revitalise the many empty spaces left and excellence must be protected social rebirth of an area that seemed in Turin, which saw the participation of totally Biella “invention”, with no Turin Sottsass. By the way, as it is seldom in the city by the shutting-down fac- because they belong to us all.